City settles police abuse case

Trial avoided; amount of settlement isn't revealed

Published 10:48 pm, Wednesday, February 27, 2013

TROY — The city has reached a settlement with a man who claimed his civil rights were violated when he was falsely arrested by city police officers in June 2010.

James Foley sued the city in U.S. District Court in Albany, alleging that he was subjected to extreme force by police officers during the arrest in which he suffered a broken ankle and other injuries.

Corporation Counsel Ian Silverman said Wednesday night that the settlement had been reached. The case had been set to go to trial on Tuesday when the sides agreed on a monetary settlement. Silverman declined to discuss the terms or amount of the settlement.

The trial was indefinitely postponed on Friday after a pretrial conference.

The City Council will take up the settlement at its April meeting and is expected to approve the agreement.

On Wednesday night, the Public Safety Committee held a lengthy executive session to discuss the litigation. It was the first time council members had met to review the situation. Individual members were briefed on the matter last week.

A major issue in the case was how the police department's internal affairs bureau handles civilian complaints filed against police officers.

A key component of Foley's case was expected to be Tedesco's testimony.

Foley's trial brief claimed that a "culture of misconduct" had developed in the department as civilian complaints filed against police officers were ignored or dismissed.

The chief "has already confirmed these failures in his deposition testimony, and detailed his extensive efforts to correct them over the objections of city officials and members of the police department," the trial brief states.

Foley's attorney, Elmer R. Keach III, said in the brief, "The plaintiff is in possession of scores of complaints of misconduct against Troy police officers that were ignored, not investigated or whitewashed by superiors who were deliberately indifferent to the rights of citizens they are hired to protect."